Huddled in Tuesday's sub-freezing temperatures, the lawmakers and about 40 demonstrators holding "hard work deserves fair pay" signs made an argument that the current $7.25 hourly minimum wage was not enough for full-time workers to support themselves.

Sen. Majority Leader Robert J. Garagiola, a Montgomery County Democrat, said the increase would be phased in by 2015. He said the improving economy makes it a good time to address forces that are widening the income inequality gap.

Maryland's current minimum wage, which is equivalent to about $15,000 a year, matches the federal rate. Nineteen states and the District of Columbia have minimum wage rates higher than the federal; four have rates below, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Washington State has the highest statewide minimum wage, $9.19 per hour.

The nation's highest minimum wage is $10.55 per hour in San Francisco, according to the Employment Policies Institute, a Washington-based organization that has advocated against raising minimum wage rates.

Tuesday's demonstration was part of the Raise Maryland campaign formed to push for a higher minimum wage. The group also proposes increasing wages for tipped workers and having minimum wage rates rise each year with the cost of living. Several unions, the NAACP of Maryland, and an immigrant rights group belong to the Raise Maryland coalition.

Prince George's County Del. Aisha Braveboy is backing the plan in the House of Delegates. .

The Employment Policies Institute released a statement Tuesday arguing that raising Maryland's minimum wage as proposed by Garagiola and Braveboy would result in job losses.

Robert Lynch, an economics professor Washington College who works with the Raise Maryland campaign, acknowledged that research shows initial job losses after a wage hike. But he said the economy is bolstered by higher-paid employees spending the larger paychecks.

"There's a stimulus effect when all of those low-wage workers spend that money," Lynch said. "While some businesses will indeed lay off workers, other businesses will see their business go up and hire workers."

Republican Gov. Larry Hogan pledged bipartisanship and offered a conciliatory tone during his snowy inauguration Wednesday, promising "to create an environment of trust and cooperation, where the best ideas rise to the top based on upon their merit."

Advocates for programs spending state dollars on stem cell research or investment in technology companies were nervous about what Gov. Larry Hogan's budget would hold for them, given warnings of "strong medicine" to cure fiscal woes.

Calling it a first step toward fully restoring the death penalty in Maryland, Del. Pat McDonough said he plans to introduce a bill that would mandate capital punishment for anyone convicted of killing a police or correctional officer, a firefighter or witness during the performance of their duty.

Marilyn J. Mosby was formally sworn in as Baltimore's top prosecutor Thursday night, and pledged to work for justice for crime victims, the innocent, and minorities who are affected disproportionately by the legal system.

Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley has rarely exercised his power to grant clemency to convicted criminals over his two terms, even as many gubernatorial counterparts have been more lenient amid a changing attitude toward these acts of mercy.